IMPRESSIONS: Here is an album which can always cheer me up whenever I put it on. Infectious beats and subtle humour infuse every track. "Rewind" has your head nodding sideways to the beat, "Contact" propels you along, "Baby Don't Apologise" gets your booty bopping, "James Brown" is a funky funny freakout, "Everybody Needs A Holiday" is one of my theme songs and for me is auditory prozac and "Stalag 123" cools you down with one of the best album closers you could ask for! Back in the day one summer, I was playing the album LOUD with all the windows open. My mother as usual was dancing to it; however we happened to look next door and the neighbour's daughter was also dancing to it in her back yard. THAT'S the booty-shaking power of this album! MEGATOP PHOENIX was also awarded the honourary Penguin Award for 1989 album of the year.

FACT SHEET: MEGATOP PHOENIX is B.A.D.'s fourth album and the last to feature the original band lineup. B.A.D. is Mick Jones' music project after leaving The Clash; in 1990 Mick Jones would form Big Audio Dynamite II with an entirely different line-up. The title MEGATOP PHOENIX refers to Jones' near-death experience when he nearly died of pneumonia before the recording of the album. There is much use of sampling on the album as usual. "Start" includes the opening narration from the Powell & Pressburger film "A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH". "Union, Jack" includes samples from "Rule Britannia", Charlie Watts' drum solo from "Honky Tonk Woman", Shakespeare's "Richard II", and the films "BRITANNIA HOSPITAL" and "THE KNACK...AND HOW TO GET IT". "Contact" samples "I Can't Explain" by The Who. "Dragon Town" samples George Formby's "Mr. Wu's a Window Cleaner Now". "Is Yours Working Yet?" samples Alfred Hitchcock. "Around the Girl in 80 Ways" samples Bernard Cribbins' "Right Said Fred". "James Brown" samples "Living In America" by James Brown. "Mick's a Hippie Burning" samples Bernard Cribbins' "The Hole in the Ground" and "Withnail & I". "London Bridge" samples Noel Coward's "London Pride". "Stalag 123" samples the theme music and dialogue from "THE GREAT ESCAPE". "End" samples dialogue from "Listen with Mother".

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MISSION STATEMENT

Here in the Dark Forest we will reach under a pile of leaves (almost) every day and pull out a favourite album to listen to. These will not be reviews per se but will feature facts, track lists and personal impressions on much-loved albums.

I strongly hope that you will leave comments relating your personal impressions and experiences related to the albums featured here. The only thing better than talking about music is listening to the music itself and I'd love to hear how this music affects you as well. So please let's hear from you.

ONE SMALL NOTE ON THE TERM "ALBUM"

This is, in fact, the correct term. An "album" does not mean a vinyl record; that term would be "record" or "LP". The term "album" means "an album of songs" in the same way as a "photo album" is "an album of photos". The definition of the word "album" means a collection of songs regardless of the medium on which it is presented. An album can be on vinyl, tape, compact disc or computer file but still remains an "album". Originally the term "album" came from the days of 78 rpm records: several records would be packaged together inside a book-shaped "album" with individual sleeves where you would slide out each record to play. With the advent of 33 1/3 rpm records (the first ever LP being Frank Sinatra's IN THE WEE SMALL HOURS) all the songs from the 78 rpm package were grouped together on one 33 1/3rd rpm LP which continued to use the word "album" even after this first change in format. That is why this blog will use that term.